The Honorable Urban C. Hirschey
Supervisor
Town of Cape Vincent
1964 NYS Route 12E
Cape Vincent, NY 13618
RE: case 12 – F – 0410
Dear Supervisor Hirschey:
I have received your January 29, 2013 letter which you posed several questions
regarding the preliminary scoping procedures established pursuant to Article 10 of the public service law. Responses to your inquiries are given below.
If BP chooses to ignore a number of items on our list of potential impacts when they submit their PSS as and we object during the comment period and argue for their inclusion, can the hearing examiner compel BP to include these impacts in a revised PSS?
No. The hearing examiner does not direct the outcome of the scoping process.After the
developer has filed a preliminary scoping statement(PSS), any person, agency, or municipality
May submit comments on the proposed scope I serving such comments on the applicant and filing a copy with the Secretary.The developer is required to prepare a summary of the material comments and its responses to those comments within 21 days after the closing of the comment period.(See 16 NYCRR 1000.5 (g). Thereafter, it is contemplated that the developer will work with interested parties to resolve any disagreements they may have about the sufficiency of the
planned scope and the studies to be included in the application. The hearing officer's role during
the PSS phase is,among other things, to distribute intervenor funds and to mediate stipulations
among the parties, where possible.(See PSL – 163(5); 16NYCRR 1000.5( i)).
Can BP be made to reviseand resubmit their PSS?if not, then what recourse would the town
have in this case?
No. As described above, applicants are required to prepare a summary of the material comments received regarding the PSS and to provide a reply to those comments. Once an application has
then filed, any party that is not a signatory to a pre- application stipulation may raise objections at the hearing as to the methodology or scope of any study or program of studies performed.(See
PSL – 163( 5) and 16 NYCRR 1000.5 (k)).
If BP chooses not to revise and consider any suggestions during the PSS comment period ,is it
possible they could move on to the application phase without responding to the Town and the hearing examiner?
Yes. While the law requires a potential applicant to respond to comments on the PSS,it does not
require the developer to adopted the recommendations made during the preliminary scoping phase.
As noted above, parties may raise objections to the methodology or scope at the hearing on the application.
If you have any additional questions or concerns relating to the PS as process,
please contact Ashley Moreno, Assistant Counsel,at ( 518) 473 – 8123.
Very truly yours,
Jeffrey C.Cohen
Acting Secretary
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